Rainforests

The most diverse biome in the world is that of the rain forest. More species of plants and animals live in the rainforests than in all of the other biomes of the world combined. This great diversity of species allows for the development of very complex interactions between various species as well as limiting the number of individual representatives of a particular species. So a rainforest may contain hundreds of species of trees, the overall numbers of each species may consist of only a few trees. Along with the extreme variety of species comes the problem with identification of species. Since most of the trees of the rainforest grow very close to one another and do not branch at low levels it is difficult to identify each tree in an area of forest. This dense canopy of trees does not allow for much light penetration. All of the plants on the forest floor normally occur in areas where a tree has fallen and light can penetrate through the thick canopy of leaves. Along with a lack of light, comes a lack of nutrients. Since much of the organic matter in the rainforest is decomposed and consumed before it reaches the forest floor, species of epiphytes such as bromeliads, orchids, and ferns, have evolved by growing on tree trunks and limbs in order to obtain light, water and minerals. Along with a variety of plants in the forest canopy, comes a variety of animals and insects which each have a specific place in their environment.

It is this great number of species which adds to the biodiversity of the world. The amazing rainforests of the world can be found in the Amazon basin of south America, including the rainforests of Ecuador, a large area of rainforest exists in the Congo basin of Africa, and another rain forested area exists from western India into the Philippines, and Malaysia, as well as the east and west coast of Australia.